Need help choosing 3M products

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flip2jetta

New member
Ok my next job is going to be a challenge. It's a purple 94' honda civic. Paint is neglected and heavily scratched all over. The roof of the car looks heavily oxidized, also looks like the clear coat just gave out on the roof. I don't have a rotary so a DA and my own two hands will have to do on this.



What are some good AGGRESSIVE 3M rubbing compounds and polishes that can be used with the 7424? What are some good 3M finishers that don't require too much upkeep afer its all said and done. The owner is a lady and she isn't expecting a miracle but I'm looking to stun her with the transformation.



I want to try 3M here because I've seen some good results from thier products and frankly I'm just curious.



Any help is appreciated, plenty of before and after pics will be provided. :)



Thanks in advance

Joel
 
Here is a list of the 3M products I use and have had good results with. Listed from most abrasive to least.



Perfect It II Fine Cut Rubbing compound: Does a good job on bad marring and swirls. Only negative is that it dusts a lot.



Perfect It III Rubbing Compound: Slighty less abrasive than PI II RC but leaves a nicer finish and not nearly as much dust.





Finesse It II Finishing Material/Machine Polish: A lighter abrasive than the above this should get most of the defects if used with a cutting pad. I have used this side by side with Megs Dual Action Cleaner Polish and it removes more defects than DACP. Use it as a first step and if it isn't abrasive enough for the defects you are working on move up to one of the rubbing compounds.





Perfect It III Machine Glaze: This is a lightly abrasive polish used to remove minor marring and swirls or as a follow up to the heaver polishes and comounds.



Perfect It II Swirl Mark Remover: This comes in two versions, one for dark colored cars and one for light colored. This is less abrasive than the Machine Glaze and it contains fillers wich is why there are two versions. It is used for minor defects and as a follow up to the compounds.
 
The only 3M products that I've used are PI III RC (rubbing compound) and PI III MG (machine glaze), but they have worked very well for me. Not sure how much more aggressive you can get with a PC and cutting pad, but these are great products and worthy of a spot on my shelf.



If the scratches are deep (through the clear coat) all you can do is minimize them by rounding off the edges, and you know you won't be able to do much for clear coat failure.



Here is a link to a thread that lists the aggressiveness of various polishes; you may find it helpful:



http://www.autopia.org/forums/showt...POLISHES+AND+GLAZES+SORTED+BY+CUTTING+ABILITY



You may also want to try some 3M SMR (one type for light, one type for dark colors) if the finish is so bad you can't remove all of the defects.



The only 3M wax I have is a paste wax, and I've never used it, but it's gotten mixed reviews here in the past. I think there are a lot better LSP’s out there, but I'm sure the 3M would look fine to a non-Autopian.



There is only so much you can do for a severely neglected car. We all hope to make them look new again, but sometimes the damage is so severe that we can only make them look better, especially when clear coat failure and deep scratches are present.
 
Seems like you guys understand exactly what I'm about to tackle. I decided to go with 3M because they do provide good, aggressive products that can be found easily, I'm not the type that likes to wait for the brown santa before I can get to work.
 
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